My MacOS X

Security Update 2010-006 is recommended for all users and improves the security of Mac OS X. Available for: Mac OS X v10.6.4, Mac OS X Server v10.6.4 Impact: A remote attacker may access AFP shared folders without a valid password Description: An error handling issue exists in AFP Server. A remote attacker with knowledge of an account name on a target system may bypass the password validation and access AFP shared folders. By default, File Sharing is not enabled. This issue does not affect systems prior to Mac OS X v10.6. For information on the security content of this update, please visit this ...(continue read)
tags: security, update

Apple released a small software update for Safari bringing it up to version 5.0.2. The update contains “improvements to compatibility and security” and includes the following: - Fixes an issue that could prevent users from submitting web forms - Fixes an issue that could cause web content to display incorrectly when viewing a Google Image result with Flash 10.1 installed - Establishes an encrypted, authenticated connection to the Safari Extensions Gallery More detailed information on the security changes can be found at http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222 tags: browser, security, update

If you’re one of those people who is very particular about protecting your privacy you might find many sites on the web today very intrusive. There are some basic tips  that a lot of users might be familiar with, like clearing your cookies and browsing history frequently. Here are some advanced tips on how you can improve your privacy if you use Firefox web browser to surf the web. 1. Clear a particular URL from your browsing history Start to type out the URL, and when Firefox pops up that site in the list of sites, select it by moving your cursor over it (but don’t click) – hold down ...(continue read)
tags: browser, security

One of the easiest way to secure your computer from the prying co-worker’s eyes is to set a screensaver password. But if often leave your computer in a short moment only to repeatedly type the password, this simple security system could be annoying. Snow Leopard let the users decide how long should the screensaver (or sleep mode) run before you need to type in the password. So if a user goes for a glass of water in the dispenser, he/she can continue right away.Want to instant screensaver activation Key/Screen Lock Key ? tags: password, screensaver, security

Apple today released a series of security updates targeting users of Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Leopard. According to the support document for the release, the updates address a single vulnerability related to handling of embedded fonts by Apple Type Services. Discovery of the vulnerability is credited to noted cybersecurity researcher Charlie Miller, who last month disclosed his discovery of 20 new zero-day holes in Mac OS X. - Security Update 2010-003 (Snow Leopard) (6.50 MB) - Security Update 2010-003 (Leopard-Client) (218.6 MB) - Security Update 2010-003 (Leopard-Server) (379.5 MB) The ...(continue read)
tags: security, update

Apple today released Safari 4.0.5 for Mac (Tiger, Leopard and Snow Leopard) bringing a number of enhancements to Apple’s Internet browser application. This update is recommended for all Safari users and includes improvements to performance, stability, and security including:Performance improvements for Top Sites Stability improvements for 3rd-party plug-ins Stability improvements for websites with online forms and Scalable Vector Graphics Fixes an issue that prevented Safari from changing settings on some Linksys routers Fixes an issue that prevented some iWork.com users from commenting ...(continue read)
tags: browser, security, update

To reset your OS X password without an OS X CD you have two waysFirst Way “create a new admin account”Reboot Hold apple + s down after you hear the chime. When you get text prompt enter in these terminal commands to create a brand new admin account (hitting return after each line):mount -uw / rm /var/db/.AppleSetupDone shutdown -h nowAfter rebooting you should have a brand new admin account. When you login as the new admin you can simply delete the old one and you’re good to go again!Second way “Resetting or changing your existing password” If you’ve ...(continue read)
tags: password, security

Requirements:Home folder to be encrypted. Don’t need my Time Machine disk to be encryptedFirst, make sure your Time Machine setup is functioning properly. The XCode installed, as it uses Property List Editor (Note: you’ll need to change the process a bit if you use a different property list editor.)How to do that: You will need to manually edit the preference file for Time Machine, adding the ID string of your File Vault disk to the list of disks to backup. You can’t do this from within System Preferences or otherwise. One way of finding the ID string of the disk is ...(continue read)
tags: backup, security, time machine

There Security Update 2010-001, which can be downloaded and installed via Software Update preferences, or from Apple DownloadsSize: 22.4MBCoreAudio CVE-ID: CVE-2010-0036Available for: Mac OS X v10.5.8, Mac OS X Server v10.5.8, Mac OS X v10.6.2, Mac OS X Server v10.6.2 Impact: Playing a maliciously crafted mp4 audio file may lead to an unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution Description: A buffer overflow exists in the handling of mp4 audio files. Playing a maliciously crafted mp4 audio file may lead to an unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution. ...(continue read)
tags: security, Snow Leopard

One of the oddities of my computer use style is that I don’t like to have my system go into screensaver or lock automatically very quickly. When I leave the keyboard, I like to be able to activate the screensaver/lock manually. Since I’m also not a fan of active screen corners, I want to be able to do so by keystroke. Annoyingly, OS X doesn’t let me bind a key to activate the screensaver. There used to be a couple utilities that enabled this, but they haven’t been updated since 10.3. The screensaver engine itself is an application, but we still need a convenient wayto activate it. Enter ...(continue read)
tags: 10.5, 10.6, quicksilver, screensaver, security